


Critical Steps

by ThatsCrazyRandom



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Aromantic Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders, Autistic Logic | Logan Sanders, Fluff, Like really minor, M/M, Minor Unsympathetic Morality | Patton Sanders, Queerplatonic Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders, Queerplatonic Relationships, Roman & Virgil are mentioned like twice, Sensory Overload, Stimming
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-21
Updated: 2020-10-21
Packaged: 2021-03-08 21:48:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27133421
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatsCrazyRandom/pseuds/ThatsCrazyRandom
Summary: Although Remus knew he’d gone to school with Logan since middle school, he’d never really paid attention to him until last year.But now he couldn’t remember how he’d ever lived without him.When telling the story to Janus for the millionth time, he would describe becoming friends with Logan as something that happened in two critical steps.Little did he know, the third was right around the corner.
Relationships: Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Logic | Logan Sanders, Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders/Logic | Logan Sanders
Comments: 10
Kudos: 121





	Critical Steps

**Author's Note:**

> This was for a Discord fic exchange!  
> It really challenged me to write two things I've never written before, a queerplatonic relationship, and an autistic character, but I'm really happy with how it turned out and I hope you enjoy it too!  
> Thank you to @/decadentscissorsapricotdeputy & @/juststarsandthemoon on Tumblr for sensitivity reading, and Alex & Lo for helping me out on Discord.

Although Remus knew he’d gone to school with Logan since middle school, he’d never really paid attention to him until last year.

But now he couldn’t remember how he’d ever lived without him. 

Now, taking Logan away would be like pulling his lungs out his back. It would suck. A lot.

When telling the story to Janus for the millionth time, he would describe becoming friends with Logan as something that happened in two critical steps. 

The first of which was actually because of Janus, because the first time Remus had properly met Logan, he hadn’t noticed him when he came into the diner with his friends. 

Luckily, Janus had.

And it had led to one of the most hilarious exchanges Remus had ever seen, and also Remus developing the biggest squish on one Logan Berry.

You see, Janus enjoyed flirting. It was almost a hobby of his, and he did it pretty much everywhere they went. 

Generally, he got a flattered response and maybe some flirting back, because he wasn't exactly bad looking. 

But this time... This time.

\--

Logan had come over by their table to collect some napkins for his table when Janus spotted him and leaned over.

Remus was totally ready to tune out the exchange, all too used to Janus’ antics. 

"That shirt makes you look hot," Janus said, winking at him. 

Logan was wearing a fairly plain black button-down, and a tie. 

He fiddled with the napkins in his hands as he looked down at his shirt, rocking up onto the balls of his feet, and then back down again. 

"Um. Thank you. I believe I got it at the mall downtown. I can give you directions to the store. They're having a sale currently. 50% off," he said, matter-of-factly. 

Remus grinned, covering his mouth to hide his laughter as Janus blinked at him. 

Janus recovered easily enough though. 

"I'd like it better if it was 100% off," he purred. 

Logan looked even more confused. 

"The store can't just give clothes away," he said. 

"No- I-," 

Remus couldn't hold it and laughed loudly. 

Logan glanced at him, looking like he couldn't understand what was so funny, and turned back to Janus. 

"That's a terrible business model." 

"Yeah Janus, that's a terrible business model," Remus crowed.

Janus looked defeated. 

"Oh I love you, can we keep you please?" Remus asked Logan. 

He looked alarmed, even going as far as to take a step back. 

"No," he said, "I'm a human person. You can't keep other people. Additionally, we just met. You shouldn't love me." 

Remus grinned, but before he got the chance to respond, one of Logan’s friends came over and tugged his arm.

“Don’t touch me,” he said immediately, looking down at where he had been grabbed. 

“Sorry kiddo, but we’re going,” the new boy said. 

“Patton, my name is Logan, and we are the same age,” Logan said. 

Patton laughed, “I know Lo, it’s just a nickname,” He said, tugging Logan’s arm again. 

Logan looked distressed but didn’t say anything, following him out of the cafe. 

Remus watched them go before turning back to Janus bouncing a little in his seat. 

“He was great!” he said cheerfully. 

“Oh definitely, I just love being made a fool of,” Janus said, rolling his eyes. 

\--

The next critical step happened almost a full week later, and Remus still looked back fondly on the day. 

He was pretty sure that was the day Logan decided to be friends with him, which was why he recounted it as a critical step. 

\--

They were in class one day, and Remus was trying to focus on his work, honestly, he was, but it was boring, so he was mostly scribbling pictures in his margins of his friends being eaten by various Lovecraftian-esque monsters.

He was mostly in his own little world, but he was aware of Logan a few tables away, mostly because of the strangely rhythmic tapping of his foot as his leg bounced up and down.

Remus personally enjoyed it. 

It was much more pleasant to listen to than the whispering of his classmates and the drone of the teacher. 

Clearly, not everyone felt the same. 

“Can you like, stop?” The girl sitting next to Logan asked him. 

Logan looked up, looking surprised, as if he hadn’t known he was doing it.

“Oh, um. Yes. I’ll stop. Sorry,” Logan mumbled, fixing his glasses where they were beginning to slip off his nose.

Remus noticed the girl roll her eyes, and stuck his tongue out at her, pulling a face. 

Logan was trying to get back to work, but it looked like the girl had broken his concentration. 

Remus could relate to that. 

He went back to his drawings, but he glanced at Logan occasionally, getting more and more concerned as the lesson went on. 

Remus saw his leg start to bounce a couple of times before Logan would glance the girl beside him and remember he’d been asked to stop. 

Logan looked increasingly uncomfortable, tugging at his shirt, and rubbing the back of his head with a fist. 

Eventually, Logan got to his feet and rushed out of class, ignoring the teacher’s protests. 

Remus' eyes widened, and he quickly stuck his hand up. 

“May I go to the bathroom?”

“I don’t want you cutting class to follow Mr Berry, you can wait until he comes back.” 

“But Miss, I really gotta go!” Remus said, wriggling in his seat to play it up a little, ignoring the laughs from his classmates, “You don’t want me to piss all over my chair do you?” 

“Fine,” she sighed. 

“Thanks, Miss!” Remus called as he shot up and out of the classroom. 

He thought he’d seen Logan go towards the bathroom, and hoped he was still there. 

He didn’t really have a plan, but Logan looked upset, and Remus wanted to help. 

Luckily, it didn’t take him long to find the bathroom Logan had headed to, and he found Logan standing in front of the basin. 

The tap was running, but Logan wasn’t using it. 

Instead, he was rocking slightly, his hands clenching and unclenching in fists. 

“Logan..?” 

Logan flinched violently and spun around, his breath speeding up even more from it’s already faster than normal pace. 

“Whoa, hey, it’s alright, I just wanted to see if you were okay...” Remus said, stepping into the bathroom fully.

Logan looked as though he was going to say something and shook his head, both of his hands clenching tightly, his nails digging into his palms. 

Remus had a suspicion of what might be wrong, but he didn’t know what he could do.

“Okay, talking isn’t an option for you right now... What can I do to help?” Remus asked, “Can we breathe together?” 

Remus tried to remember the breathing exercises Virgil had taught him. 

“Breath with me okay? In for 4 seconds, hold for 7, out for 8, okay?” Remus hoped it would help as he began demonstrating. 

Virgil often needed someone to help him find the rhythm when he was panicking, and even though Remus was pretty sure this wasn’t exactly a panic attack like Virgil got, he was hoping it would help the same way.

Logan took a second, but shakily began copying him. 

After a few breaths, Logan shoved his hands under the water, and with a few more, Remus could visibly see him beginning to relax. 

Remus waited a few minutes before speaking. 

“...Logan? How are you feeling buddy?” 

Logan cleared his throat quietly. 

“Apologies,” he said softly. 

“Hey, don’t be sorry,” Remus shrugged, “This isn’t even in the top 5 strangest things I’ve done this week.”

Logan smiled a little.

Remus stuffed his hands into his hoodie pocket. 

“So are you feeling any better?” 

Logan nodded, “Yes, thank you…”

“Oh! Remus, I’m Remus. Sorry.”

“Thank you, Remus.”

“It’s no worries. Definitely tell me to fuck off if you want, but you mind explaining what happened?”

“Oh... I believe it is referred to as sensory overload,” Logan said, “I normally have a better grasp on my feelings, but today I just.. Couldn’t.” 

“Oh okay,” Remus nodded, “But wait, the classroom was pretty quiet wasn’t it? Was I really that zoned out?” 

“No, it was... The fans were loud, and the sound of the marker on the board was especially grating today because this shirt is not a good texture,” Logan explained. 

Remus looked at Logan’s shirt. It was pretty similar to the one that he’d been wearing when Remus first met him. Honestly, Remus had no idea how it was different. 

But clearly, it was.

"Oh okay, well can you go home and change it?" 

Logan shook his head, rocking on his feet.

Remus hummed, "Ooh I know!" He said excitedly, tugging his hoodie off. 

He wasn't exactly wearing anything underneath but it would be fine. 

Logan's eyes widened, and he tried to protest, but Remus already had it off. 

"Is this a better texture?" He said, offering it to Logan. 

Logan looked hesitant. 

"Seriously, don't worry. I want to help," Remus said, wiggling it a little. 

Logan slowly reached out and touched it. 

He tried to cover up his reaction, but Remus could tell he liked it from the way his entire body sagged slightly. 

"How about a shirt swap?" Remus grinned, "It'll be fun." 

Logan bit his lip, looking down at his shirt, and then at Remus' hoodie. 

"Okay..." he said quietly, already tugging at his own shirt. 

Remus beamed, bouncing a little. 

"Great! This'll be fun. Ooh, I can't wait to see Janus' reaction!" 

"Janus is.. your friend? The one who doesn't know how stores work?" 

Remus snorted, nodding. 

"That's him!" 

Logan shrugged off his shirt and folded it neatly, before offering it to Remus. 

Remus handed him the hoodie and took the shirt, not saying anything about it being folded. 

Logan still looked a little hesitant, but when he pulled the hoodie on, Remus could see him visibly relax. 

“Better?” Remus asked, fumbling with doing up the buttons of Logan’s shirt.

Logan nodded, his hand twitching a little at his side. 

Remus grinned at him, “You should wear hoodies more often, you look adorable!” 

Even though Remus’ hoodie was clearly not something Logan would pick out for himself, it did look good on him, despite being slightly too big. 

Logan shook his head. 

“Won’t be taken seriously.” 

Remus nodded, “Ah well. It’s comfy right? It’s one of my favourites.” 

Logan nodded, clutching his hands together, “It’s very soft. Good texture. Warm.” 

Remus grinned, wiggling a little as he tugged Logan's shirt down properly and looked in the mirror. 

"I look like a sexy teacher," Remus grinned, "Hey can I borrow your glasses?" 

Logan wrinkled his nose, "I need them to see." 

Remus waved him off, "It's okay, I'll steal someone else's later." 

Remus fixed the collar on the shirt, tugging it up. 

That looked a little more him.

No one had said anything to Logan about his change of clothes that day, and it definitely had nothing to do with Remus glaring at anyone who even thought about it. 

\--

He and Logan had started hanging out more and more. 

He’d been approached by Patton, Logan’s friend and neighbour, quite early on and warned about Logan’s strange behaviours. 

Remus had just wrinkled his nose and told Patton he had no idea what he was talking about. 

Because yeah, maybe Logan did act a little different sometimes, rocking on his feet or bouncing his leg a lot more than the average person. Maybe he didn’t always understand metaphors, or pick-up lines, like in Janus’ case. Maybe he got really into astronomy and would talk for an uncharacteristic amount of time about it when you got him on a roll. 

But those were all the reasons Remus was bursting with platonic friend love for his best friend. (No, not literally, although wouldn’t that be exciting?) 

And also, Remus wasn’t exactly the most ‘normal’ either, just ask his brother. 

So yeah, his friendship with Logan began with two critical steps and had only grown stronger. 

Logan was the most important person in his life, and he wasn’t afraid to admit that. 

\--

“So are you and the nerd dating yet?” Janus asked him, picking unenthusiastically through his school lunch to find something he deemed edible.

“What? No. Why would we date? Romance is Roman’s thing,” Remus said, stuffing his mouth with something that was probably supposed to be mac & cheese. 

“Remus, surely you know that a significant portion of the school thinks you are dating him.”

“I mean, I did hear some people talking about it, but I was too busy drawing Virgil without ears to really pay attention. Can you imagine Virgil without ears? He’d have to jam his earphones right into his skill!” 

Janus grimaced a little and pushed his food tray away. 

“You’re the only one he doesn’t complain about touching him. Even Patton gets at least a cursory protest, not that he listens to them.” 

“Well, yeah,” Remus shrugged, “But that’s because we’re best friends.”

Janus shrugged, “As long as you’re aware, I guess.” 

“Sure. It doesn’t bother me. He’s basically the most important person in my life so like, I’d rather people think we’re doing the horizontal tango then change how I act around him you know?”

Janus had looked surprised at that, but he covered it quickly. 

“Well good for you Remus.” 

\--

Now, Remus always knew he had strong feelings for Logan. 

His squish had started off as large as a whale’s penis and only gotten larger.

But it wasn’t until Logan approached him one day with a ‘proposal’ that he fully realised how big his feelings were. 

\--

It had been a fairly normal day. 

Remus had only gotten in trouble once, and was bragging about that fact to Logan, who had come home with him. 

They were sitting together against the wall on Remus' bed. 

Remus was idly playing with Logan's hand as he talked and Logan was letting him. 

Suddenly, Logan cut Remus off. 

"Remus?" Logan asked, his free hand coming up to rub his hair.

Remus turned to face him properly. 

"What's up?"

"I have a proposal for you," Logan said.

Remus started getting confused, "Um okay? Shoot. But don't shoot me. Mum said no blood on the sheets."

Logan furrowed his eyebrows a little in confusion. 

"Go ahead," Remus corrected himself. 

"Well, I have been having some confusing feelings relating to you recently. So after doing research, and speaking to Patton about… feelings," Logan spoke the word with mild disdain, "And I have come to the conclusion that I would like to enter what is known as a queer platonic partnership with you." 

Remus stilled, looking at Logan as the nerd pressed on, explaining the term.

Remus knew what it meant. He'd come across it years ago while looking for a term to describe his romantic feelings, or rather lack thereof. 

He just never thought he'd have that kind of connection with someone. 

But that's what he felt for Logan. That's basically what he already had with Logan. 

"Yes. Yes. Definitely," Remus said, cutting off part of Logan's explanation, "Sorry just.. Yes. Wow. I like the sound of that. We're partners." 

Logan smiled, a rare, bright smile that seemed to be reserved for Remus and Remus alone. 

(Because they were partners, holy shit.) 

"Can I hug you?" Remus blurted out, shifting with the restless energy of how happy he was. 

Logan nodded, and opened his arms. 

Remus launched himself into them, hugging him tightly. 

Logan hugged him back. 

"I don't believe you need to ask to do this anymore. I find it very rare that I would reject this type of affection from you, which as I said before is part of the reason I believe we would make good queer platonic partners." 

Remus’ heart warmed at the idea that Logan felt comfortable enough with him in this moment to say that. 

He’d still probably ask anyway, just to be certain.

Remus grinned, "We're going to be the best QPPs ever, just you wait!" 

Logan smiled again as they sat up. 

"I.. don't believe it's a competition, but I do share the sentiment," he said. 

Remus got up, needing to flail a little so he wouldn't overwhelm Logan with his energy. 

But he nearly burst (figuratively) when he saw Logan flapping his arms slightly, smiling as he watched Remus. 

Remus nearly died. 

Now, he knew Logan stimmed, of course he did, but he'd never seen him do the flappy hands because if he had he would definitely have remembered because it was the best thing he'd ever seen. 

He didn't stare, knowing Logan got self-conscious about his stims, but he silently resolved to make Logan so happy as his QPP that he'd see the flappy hands happy stim on a regular basis. 

\--

That day became another critical point in the story. 

"And we've been happy as maggots in a dead body ever since!" Remus crowed happily, leaning into Logan, who grimaced at the gross simile, but didn't correct him.

It was true, anyway. 


End file.
